So as some of you who follow me on twitter & read my previous blog post know, All of last week i was working as a extra in the period drama “Cranford” which was a series on the BBC last year.

I live in a very picturesque 13th century village 20 minutes from Bath City and it seems very popular for films & period dramas. A few examples are Pride & Prejudice, Emma & All Harry Potter Movies.
Because of Camera’s and crew invading the village, they give the residents oppertunity to become extras. I went down for funzies really…& it turned out that me, my mum, my aunt & my brother all got a part. Hoorah.
The hours were immense..Some mornings we had to be there at 7am & wouldn’t finish until 9/10pm with only 2 stops for food all day…i could never do it for a living..sheesh!
One of the days i wasn’t home until quarter past midnight & had to be up nice and early for the next day.
It was really fun though, and i would definately do it again, the only thing i absoloutely hated was the corsets & the fact we weren’t allowed to wear ANY makeup..Nothing…not even a dash of powder or a dab of concealer. I looked hideous for a week…people didn’t recognise me i was THAT UGLY!
The crew were all lovely & even the famous actors such as Imelda Staunton, Celia Imrey & Julia McKenzie would come and eat their lunch with us..It was bizarre. Dame Judy Dench didn’t..she kept herself very much to herself…although i noticed she loved the occasional ice cream and whenever she wasn’t filming she would be mastering the daily crossword in the paper.
Some of the scenes we got to be in were really dramatic & hilarious, I’m not allowed to give away anything that’s going to happen but i’m praying that you can’t see any of me up close…nobody would be able to stomach the sight of me with no makeup!

Here are a few photos of me & the fam in all our gloriousness…
[Please excuse my hideousness..& yes, you can laugh :)]

My Aunt, Imelda Staunton & Moi. (She was SO lovely)

Mummy dressed up as a posh townsfolk. She also had a nasty cut painted onto her face :O

This is me..looking at the fake snow. This was awesome. They covered the village in snow & it looked so pretty.

Me & Mummy stroking a cow in pj’s..yes..a cow in pj’s..& yes, she did mess herself. Poor cow!


Me & Aunt with some of the lovely lovely Assistant directors.

Me & some more extras before going on set…waving our muffs in the air..aren’t we mature?

It was a barrell of laughs, but also as you can imagine…rather boring at times, being stood on your feet for 13 hours isn’t my idea of fun..but we were being paid so all is good & everyone was so lovely. I miss them already.

Look out for the 2 episode Cranford Specials around Christmas guys..you might spot me.

Have any of you been extra’s for anything? I’d love to hear your experiences too :)

  1. Ondine

    Wow – what fun! You'll have to give us a nudge when the episode is about to come on TV to remind us to watch your small screen debut! Good gossip too..

  2. Zoella- you looks absolutely adorable and your town is perfect for a period piece. that is why i want to move to England, it is so gorgeous!

  3. Laura

    You lucky think :) Stop this nonsense about you looking ugly young lady, I will hear no more of it!!! You look fab, perfect setting and I'll deffo be watching come Christmas to spot you :) xxx

  4. ANGE

    OMG! this is soo awesome! hahahahha.. i love this post! and i love the costumes, everything about it! :)

  5. I would'nt have thought Emma Watson to be such a pain! That's crazy! I want to extra! I would have thought they'd have you in makeup, you look adorable though! Everything looks fab =)
    xo

  6. You lucky bugger! I'd love the opportunity to do something like that! And for the record you are not ugly missy anything but! We all look different without makeup, and I'm sure your one of those girls who look gorgeous without the slap :) Definately remind us all around chrismas time when it on so we ca spot you haha :). Its a shame about Luke (freddie from skins) he's such a hottie I have the biggest crush on him :( and as for Emma Watson never liked her so I'm not surprised! Looked like you had a fab time! Ella xoxo

  7. Jean

    That must have been a fantastic experience :).

  8. Nina

    I would have loved to experience what you experienced! I have a fascination with period movies, even those BBC series and specials. I was surprised to hear about Emma Watson.

  9. Amy

    Omg, wow! I would so love to do something like that, just because it would be amazing being transported to another period in time. The fake snow…ahhh, lovely! xx

  10. Wow… how cool is that! I'm extremely jealous. Have never been an extra or anything. I did get invited to be in 2 Busted videos but never went along.. LOL!

    I'll keep my eyes peeled for when it comes on the telly. xx

    http://lilyloveslola.blogspot.com/

  11. Omg you look awesome :) I love period dramas, haha, I don't know why!

    I've thought about joining an extras agency before, spesh while living in London but never have…

    Looks like you had a fab time!

  12. Stop putting yourself down so much! You're an absolute stunner!!
    I want to be an extra now lol :) x

  13. wow!! so cool, they really look like people in the olden days.. lol

  14. What a fab post! Can't wait for cranford now!

  15. Daisy

    Great post! And love the goss about Emma Watson and Angelina! My friend has seen Emma Watson in Oxford looking really rough- I've heard that she's a diva before actually.

  16. THAT'S AWESOMEEEEE!

  17. Love the costumes :) I played a really minor part in a film when I was 12, and I also remember it was hard work and lots of hours spent on the set!

  18. Angela

    OMG – Sweetie you, mom and aunt look soooooo adorable! I love it. :D.

    xoxo

  19. That is so cute! Love the cute costumes!

  20. Meagan

    Oh my, that looks like so much fun!! I'm so jealous!

  21. Fantastic post! I really enjoyed reading it and seeing the photos! I would LOVE to be in a production like this! I adore period movies and TV series, and to live in a picturesque 13th century village would be my idea of heaven! Thanks for sharing Zoe :) xx

  22. Anonymous

    it sounds like fun for you.. thank you for sharing your story with us.. I love to read your blogs..

    Sydney,from United States

  23. Anonymous

    What part of Harry Potter where you in? I would love to look for you.

  24. Whitney

    Wow, that's sound like such an amazing experience, lucky! (:

  25. Really pretty girl with pretty village…in Malaysia there are so many period drama with great locations….luv u Zoe n chow….terima kasih

  26. love the inside tid bits about the actors… would be really cool to have starred in some films and things i think!

  27. You could've met Tom Hiddleston!😱 He's gorgeous.

  28. TotallyTwila

    TotallyTwila – Sounds like you had a great time! Hopefully you can feel more confident and comfortable in your own skin now. Sometimes it’s good to just be yourself for a week. You’re really, really, really, very,very,very beautiful Zoë! Please don’t put yourself down, just live life to the fullest and be happy!
    Hugs and happiness XOXO
    TotallyTwila xxx

  29. Ari

    Emma Watson is definitly NOT stuck up! I think this Sarah had maybe a fight with Emma Watson and thats why she hates her now and thats why she said this bad stuff. I hate her for this. I mean, she cannot say, that Emma is a moaning dumb girl befor knowing her really good.

  30. Andrea Bianchi

    The only miserable stuck up girl here is you, you spout out lies out of jelousy for a person which is more more famous, successful and beaitiful that you will ever be. I worked with Emma and met her on several occasion and she is not like you are depicting her to be. It’s also probably not true that this Sarah said it to you. Fuck you for spreading this lies, you miserable human being

  31. Ivy Green

    Zoe you definitely were not looking ugly. The fake snow was beautiful!

  32. Avalon

    It’s so funny how different this Zoe is than the Zoe from now is

    • iHimo

      O.M.G. yea

  33. Andre Garcia

    Emma was a kid back then. She’s older now and has matured since. So…

  34. David Taylor

    I cant believe that you were on a tv show

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